National Weather Forecast

On Friday, storms will continue to be possible from New England and the Great Lakes to Texas, with snow on the cold side across northern Minnesota and the U.P. of Michigan. Snowy weather will also be possible in the Rockies.

From Thursday through Saturday, over 3” of rain will fall from Texas to Arkansas, with the potential of several more inches of heavy snow in the Rockies and Northern Plains.

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Hurricane Otis’ explosive intensification is a symptom of the climate crisis, scientists say

More from CNN: “The rapid intensification Hurricane Otis underwent in the hours before it slammed into southern Mexico is a symptom of the human-caused climate crisis, scientists say – and one that is becoming more frequent. When it happens right before landfall, as it did with Otis, it can catch coastal communities by surprise with little time to prepare. The hurricane’s intensification was among the fastest forecasters have ever seen: its top-end windspeed increased by 115 mph in 24 hours. Only one other storm, Hurricane Patricia in 2015, exceeded Otis’ rapid intensification in East Pacific records, with a 120-mph increase in 24 hours.

Xcel Energy revives Minneapolis resiliency project with help of federal grant

More from Energy News Network: “A major federal grant will help Xcel Energy restart a Minneapolis microgrid project delayed earlier this year over cost concerns. Xcel Energy received a $100 million grant last week from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships program for resiliency and wildfire mitigation initiatives, including the Resilient Minneapolis Project. The utility also agreed to invest $140 million in the partnership grant. The Resilient Minneapolis Project is an effort to build microgrids at the Minneapolis American Indian Center, the Sabathani Community Center and a resiliency hub in North Minneapolis. The utility had offered to provide and own battery storage systems at all three sites but pulled out in June, citing escalating costs.

Johnson brings pro-oil, climate-skeptical record to speakership

More from The Hill: “Newly minted House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who won the gavel Wednesday after three prior Republican nominees failed to reach a majority, is a longtime ally of the oil industry and will be perhaps the most vocal skeptic of the scientific consensus on climate change ever to hold the speakership. Johnson, whose district includes the onetime oil industry hub of Shreveport, received a 100 percent rating from the pro-fossil fuel American Energy Alliance in 2022, along with every other Republican in Louisiana’s House delegation. … In 2017, Johnson denied human-caused climate change at a town hall, telling attendees, “The climate is changing, but the question is, is it being caused by natural cycles over the span of the Earth’s history? Or is it changing because we drive SUVs? I don’t believe in the latter. I don’t think that’s the primary driver.”

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– D.J. Kayser